What’s Up With Prestacycle’s PrestaWrap Tire Boot?
The PrestaWrap Tire Boot by Prestacycle is manufactured from Dupont™ Tyvek® and promises to help repair large tears—even for tubeless setups—in emergencies.
Prestacycle recently released their PrestaWrap Tire Boot, which uses a peel-to-stick adhesive that permanently adheres to a rip or hole in your tire until you have the opportunity to replace it.
This way, Prestacycle advertises the tiny emergency boot delivers stretch-proof, waterproof performance, while also boosting your tire’s strength, maintaining its shape, and helping prevent your tube from bubbling out and popping.
In this article, we’ll take a quick look at the new PrestaWrap Tire Boot and see how it compares, starting with its basic functionality.
How Does the PrestaWrap Tire Boot Work?
Each PrestaWrap Tire Boot is made from Dupont™ Tyvek® material that measures 4 1/4 inches (106mm) long and 1 7/8 inches (48mm) wide, weighs less than one gram, and is suitable for temporarily repairing tire sizes up to 32mm.
According to the Prestacycle website, you only:
- Remove one PrestaWrap (each package includes four)
- Peel away its backing to expose the adhesive underneath
- Use the measurement markings on the outside of PrestaWrap’s package, and wrap it around the tube with the text facing outward
- Affix PrestaWrap to itself—not to the tube or tire, which forms a structural cylinder that provides stronger reinforcement under the tire
Then, reinstall your innertube, making sure the PrestaWrap is centered underneath the cut. Since it sticks to itself, Prestacycle indicates PrestaWrap is easy to reposition if you miss the bullseye on your first attempt.
After reinstalling and reinflating your tube, the air pressure pushes the PrestaWrap against the inside of your tire’s tear or rip, which Prestacycle emphasizes allows you to use it inside tires with sealant. Also, this:
“… creates a tire-sized structure to prevent even the smallest tube expansion from happening underneath the tire cut. This, combined with a weight of less than one gram, eliminates the bumps and uneven ride that often cause boot repairs to fail quickly.”
Still, the company emphasizes that “PrestaWrap does NOT restore the full integrity of your tire and is meant for temporary use only.”
“The determination to ride your bicycle with a tire repair and the determination of its practicality and safety is purely yours,” they note. “Prestacycle assumes no liability for this products use, or any issues to rider health or equipment from its use.”
All of this certainly sounds great, but is PrestaWrap a unique cycling product? Let’s take a look next.
Are There Other Bike Tire Boots Like PrestaWrap?
The only popular tire boot currently competing with the PrestaWrap is Park Tool’s TB-2, which is manufactured from “waterproof vinyl membrane with fiber weave reinforcement,” compared to PrestaWrap’s Dupont™ Tyvek®.
Another big difference is that Park’s TB-2 adheres to your bike’s tire underneath the cut. On the other hand, PrestaWrap forms a cylinder around a tube, which “creates a tire-sized structure to prevent even the smallest tube expansion from happening underneath the tire cut.”
Here are more differences between the two:
| Price | Construction Materials | Measurements | Notes | |
| Prestacycle PrestaWrap | $9.95 for four ($2.49 each) | Dupont™ Tyvek® | 4 ¼” (106mm) W x 1 7/8” (48mm) L | Attaches to innertube and uses pressure to seal tire cut, accommodates tires up to 32mm (trimmable) |
| Park Tool TB-2 | $3.95 for three ($1.32 each) | Waterproof vinyl membrane w/fiber weave reinforcement | 3″ (76mm) x 1 ¼” (45mm) | Attaches to tire’s underside opposite the cut, suitable for cuts up to 3.” |
Given these numbers, PrestaWrap might work best for sealing larger tire cuts, since it has a bigger overall footprint and sandwiches between your tube and tire. Since PrestaWrap doesn’t adhere to your tire, its design could also work better for tubeless setups.
Related: Orange Seal Tubeless Sealant Review
However, each PrestaWrap works out to almost twice the cost of Park’s TB-2, which also features a smaller footprint. Despite this, it attaches directly to the underside of your tire, which could provide a more robust seal in an emergency.
Should You Check Out the PrestaWrap Tire Boot?
So far, there seems to be a lot to like about the PrestaWrap Tire Boot: it comes from a reputable, bicycle-centric company with mostly positive online customer feedback, and features a meaningfully different design than the Park TB-2.
And while we haven’t tested one yet, we’d imagine PrestaWrap’s cylindrical, adhesive-free construction could make a big difference in effectiveness if you prefer running tubeless.
PrestaCycle’s PrestaWrap is priced meaningfully higher than Park Tool’s TB-2, however.
Do you think PrestaWrap is a good investment, or do you prefer the TB-2? Tell us all about it by leaving your comment below.
Keep rolling: Video: How to Install Tubeless Bike Tires
